Mike Bloom is a Manhattanite and a podcaster for various shows on Rob Has a Podcast and Post Show Recaps, along with the long-running Survivor Historians podcast. He was voted "Most Likely to Be a Hufflepuff" by every person he's ever met. Mike also once tried to emulate a hip hop dancer in a Wendy's commercial. Twitter: @AMikeBloomType.

1) Hang the DJ – This way a really fun episode, I really liked the premise and the twist ending was good
2) Crocodile – I may be a little biased on this one because I work in commercial insurance claims so this could very well be my future
3) Black Museum – I loved that this was basically a three in one episode
4) USS Callister – Production value and acting is off the charts, but honestly I felt the story line was a little too choppy for me
5) Arkangel – I found the technology on this one fascinating, just wish they explored it a little more
6) Metalhead – I nearly fell asleep during this episode

SaraMadridista

So, I am not sure how everyone didnt have Metahead as number 6, I wasnt even rooting for women to make it because people died because of things with no explanation of what she wanted to do, I mean 40 minutes, I cant take back.

Overall this was a meh episode, this was too much on nose for me in comparison older episodes.

Anyway the ranking is:
1) Black Museum – I thought the third story actually the most interesting because it actually mirror (no pun intended) our society right now.
2) Crocodile – I LOVE IT, this episode is the most black mirror, I disagree about history of you is about your life, crocodile is about what are you willing to do not to get caught, I love it!
3) Hang the DJ – Hmm, cute story, not my thing, still better than the last 3
4) USS Callister – I know internet loves it so much, but the end of that episode, pissed me off so much and always never been fan of star terk and co shows, so this was just not interesting.
5) Arkangel – I just cant look pass the fact that all the teens all look at least 25 in episode and end was so predictable

Tusk

1 US Callister
Pro: Plus/plus casting and acting, excellent writing the story had great pacing and tension.
Con: Can’t think of one other than I did feel a ‘twinge’ of disappointment for the happy ending. Seemed a little ‘and they lived happily ever after’-ish, but it didn’t take me out of the execution on the whole 5/5

2 Hang the DJ
Pro: Best cast episode, the two leads have tangible chemistry and the woman is gorgeous, very charismatic. This one felt Twilight Zonish to me (in a good way), like the black and white ones, reality gives way to concept, hinted throughout the episode a number of times by the skipping stones skipping 4 times every time.

Con: story telling suffers, for the sake charisma and character, especially the pacing had a frantic quality….as if we’re speedily reading through pages to get to the end. Even so, it’s a satisfying ending. 4/5

3 Black Museum
Pro: Both leads are excellent, again great casting. If you’re an old fan of Creepshow and the like, this episode is for you. The first story with the Doctor addicted to pain, had a very “Cthulu” Lovecraft human horror vibe to it, especially near the end when he self inflicts.

Con: The actors in the short stories are weaker, especially the girlfriend trapped in her boyfriend’s brain. I suppose her eventual turning into a grade a b!tch had to be accelerated & enhanced to advance the story, but how could she not know her constant complaining wouldn’t result in what eventually happened to her? You’d think after a couple of times being ‘turned off’ for months, she might figure to tone it down…at the very least she should’ve started feeling his rising anxiety at her complaining. 3.5/5

4a Metalhead
Pro: Stylistic, I enjoyed the design, animation & execution of the ‘dogs’. They felt like they had personalities, weight & reality that helped suspend your belief making it seem like a ‘living’ death machine. The Black & White makes it stand out aestheticly.

Con: No story, the ‘twist’ ending feels made up. This felt like a series of actions & action pieces in order to show off a 3d animation project. Didn’t feel the actors, bordering on boring. Feels like it should be lower on the list, but the last two really annoyed me. This episode was just ‘meh’ 1.5/5

4b Crocodile
Pro: Personally, I don’t like this kind of stuff, but some do. That feeling of dread of pending death. The episode has that most visceral sense bordering on ‘murder’ porn. That’s all I can think of as a plus 😛

Con: The whole episode. I felt tension, I appreciated the technical aspects of the filming, edits, staging, setting,, but on top of having no one to root for, it was just watching the insurance investigator get lead down a maze to her inevitable demise. The dominoes of the deaths of the rest of her family was gratuitous. The twist of the hamster being the witness makes it seem like they thought of that idea first, THEN built a story behind it. 1.5/5

6 Arkangel
Pro:…. it could have been longer?

Con…. extremely unlikable and unsympathetic performance as the Mom. The Grandfather also felt like an actor from community theater. Felt like I’ve seen this kind of story before. Just unrealistic and overtly dramatic execution of what could’ve been an interesting concept. 1/5

1) Hang the DJ // the good: everything! chemistry! story! bonus fun fact, I never read descriptions, so at first I thought the plot was more sinister than what was really going on [made it more fun]; the bad: nothing! it was perfect! maybe Frank, knowing the rules of the system, checking the expiry date without Amy seemed irresponsible and not becoming of a good partner… but then again, it actually fit his personality, because she seemed more forthcoming & conscientious than he as anyway, so it comes back to great writing, frustrating, but complete.
2) USS Callister // the good: overall production feel/ didn’t want it to end! Daly’s socially awkward, borderline aspy/autistic personality perfectly captured; the funny & smarmy, at times maybe improv’d [?] lines by cast, very cool resolution; the bad: sometimes the timing for certain maneuvers were slow & unrealistic, also wished Jimmi Simpson’s clone character stuck around in the new universe, but I understand the sacrifice was powerful
3) Black Museum // the good: the whole call-back tying everything together vibe; the bad: brits trying to capture american accents poorly, also, the idea that the protagonist would enjoy the very thing that ultimately punishes the antagonist. Revenge is one thing, but the potential of numbing yourself & essentially turn into a lowkey sadist is a bit counterproductive
4) Metalhead // the good: frigging end world & we did it to ourselves! also the irony of what they were trying to collect; the bad: see the good
5) Crocodile // the good: they filmed in Iceland <3, also the actress who played Shazia- excellent & expressive performance, which bummed me out when we were faced with her demise; also all the parallels to an actual crocodile were clever, but who likes crocodiles? the bad: the escalation… really…? what kind of clues makes us ready for Mia's profound instability? feh… or maybe they're telling us that snapping when threatened is a slippery slope?
6) Arkangel // the good: ::sigh:: perhaps the decent progression of time and seeing Sara develop; the bad: illogical inconsistencies. Perhaps that was due to how irrational Marie was from the start- difficult birth, Sara missing at the playground resulting in overcompensating for her safety — didn't this woman have friends? read books? compare other behaviors to her own? too over-the-top, including the ending, but I guess all the circumstances makes it plausible…

Heather Ringer

Am late but Glad to find this podcast Ala Big Brother! Agreed with Rob the most, mostly. I liked Crocodile better than Hang the DJ. Maybe because of the happyish ending, that I really quiet didn’t understand, Hang the DJ was a good story but didnt feel like a Black Mirror episode. Maybe I just don’t like happy endings like San Junipero. I like bleak ones where the bad guy gets there comeuppance like Black museum and USS Callister (my fav episodes) Even though the story line of Crocodile has been done before(with a twist) I still enjoyed it. Agree with everyone on with all the technology why no self driving cars, at least a car that will start when someone is trying to kill you! Off to find old podcasts of Black Mirror!